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Oil heads for 7th weekly loss as supply glut drags

Friday, January 9, 2015 - 16:06

[SINGAPORE] Oil prices were heading for a seventh weekly loss on Friday, with key producers showing no signs of cutting output in the face of a global supply glut.

Brent and US crude futures both hit their lowest since 2009 this week and are down more than 50 percent from June, although they inched up on Friday after robust US economic data brightened the outlook for demand.

Brent crude had climbed 9 cents to US$51.05 a barrel by 0717 GMT. US crude for February delivery was up 29 cents at US$49.08. Brent's premium to US crude fell near US$2 a barrel, the narrowest since October.

But supply concerns remained as Saudi Arabia and its Gulf OPEC allies are showing no sign of considering cutting output to boost oil prices even as demand slows globally.

Meanwhile, annual consumer inflation in China remained near the lowest in five years, signalling persistent weakness in the world's largest energy consumer.